The unit price of South Korean-made vehicles went up this year despite a drop in export volume, industry data showed Sunday.
According to findings released by the Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association and local carmakers, outbound passenger vehicle shipments reached 829,852 units in the first four months of this year, down 1.4 percent compared to a year earlier.
Exports of cars made by Kia Motors Corp. and Renault Samsung Motors Co. moved up, but numbers for Hyundai Motor Co., GM Korea Co. and Ssangyong Motor Co. all backtracked.
Overseas sales of Kia and Renault Samsung rose 1.9 percent and 4.8 percent on-year, while those for Hyundai, South Korea's No. 1 carmaker, dropped 4 percent, with Ssangyong and GM Korea reporting losses of 18 percent and 3.8 percent each in the four-month period compared to the year before.
Despite the decrease in units exported, KAMA data showed the average price of cars shipped abroad by Hyundai surged 11.6 percent vis-a-vis the previous year to $16,623. Sales figures bolstered by Hyundai's Genesis luxury sub-brand, which reported solid gains on demand for the G90 flagship sedan and its stablemate the G80.
